All tagged democracy
Abbigail Doyle competed in the NC VFW voice of democracy competition. She is a senior at North Lenoir High School and one of 17 state finalists. Her essay and speech was selected as a winner by the local vfw post. She was then selected as the district 2 winner for the state.
Do the ends justify the means? This familiar question produces strong feelings precisely because its answer is necessarily complicated. Just about all of us admit to a scenario, such as the proverbial ticking time-bomb, in which we would countenance unsavory means if required to save lives. In general, however, most religious and ethical traditions teach that we are not permitted to use injurious or unethical means to accomplish even noble ends.
In 2018, North Carolinians went to the polls to cast ballots for congressional, legislative, and local candidates. They also voted on several constitutional amendments. One of them required the presentation of a photo ID in order to vote. The measure was extensively debated for months. Some 1.6 million voted against it. Just over 2 million voted for it. By a 55% to 45% margin, North Carolinians added a photo-ID requirement to the state constitution.
I passed 80 a couple of years ago. I don’t know if anyone values my opinion anymore. I haven’t written letters like this since I argued with Jesse Helms about environmental issues. And yes, our environment is critically important; it’s the only one we have! But in observing things American over the years, I see some other issues that we have been wrestling with on which I have formed some opinions:
